Batch And Creating Omnichannel Context For Furniture Commerce

Batch: Omnichannel Context for Furniture Sales

Furnishing a living space – whether it’s a house or an apartment – can be challenging work for those who are not design-oriented, particularly when it is their first time and they are trying make their home look like the dwelling of an adult human being.

It was an issue that Batch CEO Lindsay Meyer encountered when she purchased her first home in 2016 and had the simple and very reasonable desire that it look nice.

But wanting “nice” and being able to design it into place are very different things. For consumers still in school or just out of it, design considerations are generally secondary to considerations around price and function. If a piece of furniture is cheap (preferably free) and does whatever it is supposed to, odds are there is someone in their early 20s who wants it.

But most working adults who have a budget that extends beyond the free section on Craigslist would like their home furnishings to reflect that fact. That said, creating a look from scratch is not easy work – particularly if one is already working full-time.

“Today’s typical shopping experience is quite literally out of touch, since you can’t reach through your screen to touch that lust-worthy end table,” Meyer said. “But the solve isn’t a new store. It’s a new Batch. An immersive, inspiring shopping experience in a place that’s as comfortable and welcoming as your best friend’s home.”

Your best friend’s home but better, because everything in it can be bought and taken home with you.

Batch’s retail efforts come in both digital and physical flavors.

The brick-and-mortar Batch experience is found in San Francisco’s Russian Hill neighborhood, housed in a renovated 1916 firehouse. Described by reviewers as a “dreamhouse-turned-store,” it displays its wares via what it calls “installations” – seasonal displays that offer a full home showcase worthy of local or small, up-and-coming brands.

“We’re often the first place that [these companies go] offline,” Meyer noted. “So the feedback we receive is so meaningful, because we’re the first eyes and ears for their customers. The online shopping experience leaves a lot to be desired. We saw a more permanent, or evergreen, opportunity to work with brands seasonally to showcase their products, to test new concepts, get data and connect with customers offline in a new format.”

Which is not to say that Batch has given up on the digital world of sales – because it hasn’t. According to Meyer, it can’t: Consumers are entirely too digitally wired, not to mention the fact that not everyone can go to San Francisco to shop Batch directly. But even online Batch looks to differentiate its offering by keeping it tied to curations and context. Among the options open to consumers is the ability to buy a fully appointed room, or even a full apartment, at a reduced package price. The price might still be high – a kitchen package with table, chairs, tabletop items, cutlery and cookbooks comes at a cost of $4,000, which is not a tiny sum. But the same collection of items purchased individually would cost the customer $5,423, so the savings are genuine.

The next big step for batch, Meyer noted, is finding new ways to expand their physical retail concept, without necessarily building out more large and complex showrooms like they have in San Francisco. That might include pop-ups, but with a different twist on the norm. Batch is currently working with real estate developers and realtors of multi-unit residential buildings to set-up “satellite spaces” or short-term shops. Customers will literally get the at-home feel of Batch, because the “shops” will in fact be homes.

And, of course, customers will be able to buy what they see on display, or even purchase the whole thing as either a one- or two-bedroom package.

“These in-home, browse-and-buy opportunities allow you to see other expressions of the same products,” added Meyer.

Commerce, she noted, is increasingly becoming about context, and catching the consumer at just the right moment of interest and intention to secure a buy. In the world of retail, Batch believes the key will be creating environments “where products are placed in non-store spaces for more intimate interactions.” Customers need more than new stores, Meyer said – they need new approaches to operating retail locations so the shopper barely knows she is in a store at all.

Flying Cars Can Wait: CES Shows Future Is Robots That Cool Your Soup, Pick Up Socks

AI Me gadget from CES 2025

What do the movies “Blade Runner,” “2001: A Space Odyssey,” “Back to the Future Part II” and Spike Jonze’s “Her” all have in common?

These science fiction movies, each depicting various versions of a future full of fantastic technologies, all take place in the year 2025 or earlier.

Though some of the high-tech gadgets and futuristic innovations seen in these films, such as hoverboards and flying cars, haven’t quite materialized in everyday life, they have sparked imagination and set the stage for the very real innovations. As the dozens of groundbreaking products and wacky gadgets that debuted at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this week reveal, the future is certainly now.

CES, after all, rarely disappoints when it comes to providing a first-look at some truly strange gadgets that might just represent the ultimate showcase of tomorrow’s technology.

From artificial intelligence (AI) being embedded into everything and smarter than ever home devices, to autonomous robotic companions and wearable tech that both bends and blends reality, many of the inventions that once seemed out of reach in Hollywood films are now being unveiled on the convention floor.

See also: The Five Not-So-Obvious Things That Will Change the Digital Economy in 2025

Could Smart Home Robots Revolutionize Daily Life?

It’s becoming clear that today’s technological advancements are increasingly bridging the gap between what was once imagined and what’s now becoming real.

For example, smart home robots are no longer a futuristic fantasy — they are being positioned as potentially indispensable components of modern households.

CES 2025 saw the debut of the Roborock Saros Z70, a robot vacuum with a telescopic, five-axis arm. Rosey the Robot from “The Jetsons” has nothing on this little gadget, which its maker describes as “a mechanical arm that sees and thinks,” and is able to pick up and put away items like socks, shoes, tissues and more.

For more serious household tasks, the SwitchBot Multitasking Household Robot K20+ Pro was also unveiled at CES 2025. “Whether it’s delivering objects, vacuuming, monitoring pets, purifying the air, providing home security, or even mobilizing smart tablets, the K20+ Pro juggles household management with ease … from delivering food and drinks to carrying small packages,” said a company release.

Read more: Training Robots Using Video Games Could Democratize Warehouse Automation

The K20+ Pro’s core is designed for customization and flexibility, serving as a modular foundation that allows users to create, adapt, and personalize the robot for a wide variety of innovative applications, and can connect with third-party smart devices like Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri, ensuring integration into any smart home ecosystem.

Elsewhere, TCL premiered its “AI Me” (Amy) concept companion robot, complete with animated eyes, autonomous movement and an AI-powered camera on its head; while Dreame showcased its X50 Ultra robot vacuum that has legs to avoid obstacles.

As smart home technology continues to evolve, the integration of robots designed to assist in daily activities could significantly alter how we interact with our homes, manage tasks and even shape the future of work.

TomBot, for example, debuted an emotional robotic lap dog, Jennie, an AI robot therapy dog designed to keep seniors company. On the more playful side of things, Tokyo robotics startup Yukai Engineering introduced the Nékojita FuFu, a portable cat-shaped robot that can blow air to cool hot food or drinks.

It wasn’t solely robotics for use at home being showcased at CES. John Deere used the Las Vegas event to reveal its own autonomous agricultural products. The fully autonomous machines were on display from Jan. 7 to 10, and were a bit bigger in size, if equivalently less cute, than the TomBot puppies.

Read more: Google Reportedly Bringing Gemini AI to TV Sets

The Future Is Calling and Consumers Can Answer Anywhere

Behind the strangely futuristic convenience of a robot picking up your laundry and taking out the trash while it vacuums and interfaces with the rest of your household appliances lies a much larger story: the rise of the smart economy.

As CES 2025 showed, augmented reality (AR) glasses are the eye candy of the smart economy. A host of futuristic specs were unveiled, capable of a range of tasks that turn the wearer into a high-tech superhero.

Halliday showcased “the world’s first proactive AI glasses with invisible display,” while freshly debuted Loomos.AI glasses offer a ChatGPT-4o integrated AI assistant.

But other appendages remain up for grabs, and innovative products from smart rings to apps like WowMouse, which allows smartwatch wearers to control devices using just their gestures and fingers, are vying for market share in ways that aim to make daily life more convenient, efficient and secure.